[PORTALS] Moving platforms in Eternity (BETA TEST HERE)

I've managed to put linked portals on polyobjects, which allowed me to obtain moving platforms (or cars/cabins/gondolas) in Doom.

Here are the executable BETA releases:
March 13 2016: Windows, Mac: now polyobject portal lower and upper textures are set directly from the portal's linedef, which still has to be 1-sided. This has the following benefits: (1) they will get the light levels from the surrounding areas, (2) you won't be constrained to set the exact heights and light levels in the buffer sectors from behind the inner group's portal lines. Be sure to re-download the test map; it has been updated. If you don't, you'll see missing textures.

Old ones:
March 11 2016: Windows, Mac: fixed game loading when there are polyobjects and/or ACS scripts (also on master!)
March 6 2016: Windows, Mac: multiple portals allowed per polyobject. Fixed wall portal problems. Fixed clipping into polyobject car portals.

Here's a test wad to run it with:
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/5103936/eternity-portal/movingplats.wad.zip

The source code is in the portal-fixes-2016 branch, https://github.com/team-eternity/eternity/tree/portal-fixes-2016

Here are a few screenshots:



Sure, bugs are still there, feel free to report them.

You are a wonderful person and this is wonderful.

This is awesome! Can't wait to try this out when I'm back in country.

Since you're so excited, I'm going to post the current bugs:
- sometimes imp fireballs disappear when shooting into an arriving platform
- if you step out that you're merely with a foot on the platform, you will be thrown out
- projectiles get strangely deviated when firing into the platform while it's changing direction
- if you stand with part of a leg out of the platform (but not enough to get thrown), it will not stop the platform from hitting walls. Instead, that part of the leg may get stuck in a wall!
- this can transport you through walls if the polyobject is moved so. But be careful not to try to get out during this!!
- possible that you accidentally get teleported into a control sector because of missed/double-hit portal (i hate line portals)
- HOM if the platform butts a wall, but not in all directions. Sometimes it works.

Good thing: it can still crush objects hit by lower walls correctly.

Design limitations:
- at least a beam must exist for the platform (just for Polyobj_StartLine)
- both floor and ceiling are required.
- no rotations yet.

Keep in mind ZDoom is also working on this. In fact they came first with the idea of polyobject portals. Stay tuned there as well. I just wanted to have it asap in Eternity.

Does the automap handle it correctly?

Yes, except that the part you're not inside of is grayed out, which is normal. But in this case I actually wanted to make the group inside the polyobject colourful as well, except that when I enter it, the normal area is still grey.

All-in-all I'd rather have genuine moving linedefs than portals for this. For now it will do but clearly it has too many strange side effects.

Another bug: due to dropoff logic, monsters won't be able to get off even when the platform is docked to station. I think you can still use the new ThrustThing with this, as long as the never-falloff compatibility setting is disabled.

I've just uploaded a new beta version (please test). It's in the first post.

Hot damn!

This looks promising, though I experienced a bug while testing. Saving and loading can cause the first polyobject to desync and go off its intended path.




... I don't think it's supposed to go here. :P

Oops! I really have to watch that out.

But: did you test with the latest executable I uploaded? What's the name of the zip/7z you downloaded? Or what's the filesize of the exe or app (right click, properties for accurate number)?

I downloaded the most current one (Eternity-portal-b9e30cd.7z), which my machine reports as 1,954,304 bytes.

Jewellds: fixed the bug you mentioned (and others as well)! Check the original post.

Yay! I gave this a good test, and I haven't been able to reproduce the bug in the new version. :)

Update on how the upper and lower textures of polyobject portals are set. Now they're set directly from the linedef with the portal special, and they act pretty close to regular 2-sided lines. Keep in mind that polyobject portal lines must still be 1-sided lines for everything to work correctly. They are made 2-sided and passable internally by the engine, but in the map editor they have to look like regular walls.

3DMidTex is currently broken when used on a portal flat.

On the top part of a portal flat construction, put a walkable 3DMidTex on the floor (eg. steptop, lower pegged ). You should be able to walk on the 3DMidTex 'bridge', but instead you fall through the floor portal to the area below it.

As long as there is a solid floor, 3DMidTex behaves as it should.

Try the next DRDTeam upload and check if there still are problems. The linedef collision detection code is very spaghetti-like; probably I contributed to it.

printz said:

check if there still are problems.

Using the march 16th SVN build, 3DMidTex lines on portal flats now work correctly. Going up/down ladders using closely-spaced 3DMidTex lines also works. However, going up these ladders to a portal area above is now completely broken: player is stuck as if bumping into a wall. A regular stair with the same step spacing as the ladder works as intended.

Mordeth said:

However, going up these ladders to a portal area above is now completely broken: player is stuck as if bumping into a wall.

Damn, there can't be one without the other :P Gotta fix this when I have time.

Mordeth said:

However, going up these ladders to a portal area above is now completely broken: player is stuck as if bumping into a wall.

Try the next DRDTeam build, maybe it no longer happens.

printz said:

Try the next DRDTeam build, maybe it no longer happens.

The March 19th SVN build works correctly again in all cases tested so far.